Anybody in a wheelchair and lives alone?

[skyeblue]

I was wondering if anyone here lives alone and how do you manage?

My friend will be living alone do to a marriage breakup. What services are be available to help you live independently and how much do they cost?

[hunterd]

i live in the us, but am in a wc. all day i`m alone. all things can be done, just need to 'invent' new ways to do them. adaptation is rule #1!!! can`t awnser about the services or costs. good luck.

dave

[GardeningMSer]

I use a scooter and live alone

I still have enough mobility to get around my small apartment with a cane or an agile 3 wheel scooter when I'm tired.

When I was evaluated for an electric w/c we came up with a monster that would raise the seat, raise the legs, and fly if needed. I'm kinda glad my request was denied

I go out using the scooter, it has at least a five mile round trip range on flat ground with new batteries, but I bring the charger in a day pack if I'm going to new places. I also bring something to read, my cell phone, and am more than willing to call a cab if I get stuck. My scooter can easily be put into the trunks of most cabs, even a Prius when its seat is removed, I have enough strength on my right side to lift the heavy end, with help from the cabbie we get it in and out. I tip cabbies well - about 20%. If I had an electric w/c I'd use Luxor cabs, they have a lot of cabs with ramps and tie downs, but they can take a while to reach you - but you can make appointments.

I can stand for short periods and have good upper body strength. I now have a personal trainer I meet with for two 30 minute sessions twice a week, I also do some cardio work w/o him. We're working on increasing core strength and flexibility. Despite very easy sessions at the time, my legs hurt for about two days after these workouts.

I was very worried about showering and falling since this is not a ADA apartment and has a tub, not a walk in or roll in shower - I had both in my old house. I bought an inexpensive bath tub transfer bench about $50 from the large bookseller/ merchandiser, two legs go in the tub, two go on the floor, the unit is about a foot longer than the tub is wide. I sit on the outer portion of the bench, lift my bad leg into the tub, scoot my bottom over a bit, then bring my strong leg in. I sit during the shower and make sure I'm well supported when I get out - there's another rubber shower mat outside the tub.

If I had to shower while standing in the tub my body could be lying there for days before any noticed. I don't know anyone on this floor, know only one guy in the building aside from the staff.

I bought two grab bars that attach to the bathtub wall with suction cups, I was told real grab bars would be installed if I signed a multi month lease, these stick very well since I used a good cleaner to remove soap scum from the tiles and dried the tiles.

If I were to stay here I'd definitely ask for grab bars, the suction cup ones are for balance, not support. I don't know if it is local law or just good customer relations but the three buildings I've looked at for long term leases are all happy to install the bars.

I like to do my own grocery shopping, I like to shop and cook and did prior to my very wanted separation and move west. Now that there's only one at dinner, I'm buying good prepared meals at a local market and heating them in the microwave. I will sometimes use a supermarket's delivery service when I get back in town after a short visit.

Cleanup - basically I'm not too fussy and will use a maid about once a month to vacuum & mop, as well as wash and change the sheets. Seated I use a broom and dustpan with long handles, you've seen them in use at stadiums, theaters and the like.

This is a small apartment, messes have to be dealt with pretty quickly or the place becomes a disaster area. I have four or five trashcans as well as a food trash can and several boxes I use for recycling paper.

I'm fiercely independent, more energetic and interested in the world than many, able to talk easily with people I meet. I've met and dated several women, one is becoming a very special friend. She asked today why I didn't mention using a scooter when I put my profile on line, I replied I am much more than a scooter user, it is a small part of my being. She thought about this and said "you're right, I haven't seen anything keep you from doing what you want".

I'm retired with adequate income and resources - this makes a huge difference.





I'm finding living in a energetic city - San Francisco - with a mellow climate is far better and more interesting than living in a cold CT suburb now that winter is here. Here I can go anywhere on my scooter, public transportation is available and cheap, buses, trolleys and subway are accessible.

I see lots of wheelchairs, electric wheelchairs, and scooters in town.

[GardeningMSer]

part II - living alone with MS

I want to add to my previous post, I was falling asleep as I wrote due to Ambien, it was starting to get interesting - Ambien is a mild hallucinogen, I had glimpses of a 5' tall cat standing like a human on my left. Weird, but not my weirdest Ambien experience, those I can't put into words.

Although I'm using a scooter here in SF, when I was living in a large house I had a power wheelchair I used indoors and outside the house - my driveway was very steep, I needed an electric chair or scooter to go up and down. I had renovated the kitchen and a bathroom to be wc friendly, the former had space for my knees under the sink and under the cooktop, the bathroom had grab bars everywhere, a large shower I could roll into, the floor had no barriers.

I had used a manual wc, found it was a very poor choice when cooking - couldn't use both hands to move pots or dishes, had to put the brakes on before doing almost anything and then release them before moving. I'm sure its possible to go manual in the kitchen, for me it wasn't.

Your friend should get an apartment with a 3' or wider front door, some older apartments have narrower doors that will make getting in and out rather difficult.

I strongly recommend a kitchen where counters and cabinets are not in a L shape - galley or inline kitchens are much better for those in wheelchairs.

He should ask management to remove all carpets and rugs.

Since he will be living alone he should ask his dr. to Rx an electric wheelchair with a seat lift, or even one that allows him to stand upright. I've borrowed one of the latter, decided it was more than I needed, a lot more than I needed. They are very expensive, but insurance companies have been known to pay for them if the dr pushes hard enough. I'm pretty certain Invacare makes wcs with lifts.

[kebsa]

I live in australia so i am not sure how similar our systems are to yours. I live alone and am completely wheelchair dependant and i too am fiercly dependant but after a really bad year in 08 i finally admitted that i needed some help at home for saftey - the final straw for me was falling and crushing 3 vertabra in my spine, being stuck on the floor all night slowly trying to drag myself out to the phone!!


in theory we have a government funded system to provide in home care as it is cheaper for the government to do this than to have people in long term care or hospital, the short term emergency care that provides about 2 weeks worth of care as a hospital avoidance program works well but the long term care program is significantly underfunded so that it took me 18 months to get some home support for personal care and housework even though i had been assessed as in urgent need and had spent 28 weeks in hospital in all that year! So what i learnt was that i would have been better to have admitted that i was getting closer to needing help before i got to the point where i really really needed it!

I do get my equipment funded through the state and have never had issues getting that, whether it be shower chairs, dressing sticks right through to my electric chair. I am also lucky to be in state owned housing, in a good neighbourhood close to medical care, shops etc. On a good day i can easily get to the local shops to do my shopping in small amounts a few times per fortnight but if i am not so well then i use an on line supermarket that does not cost much more than my local! the home i am in is old and less than ideal in terms of being wheelchair friendly but they are currently building me a new home unit that they are designing with advice from the MS societies OT, that will be ready later this year- ( they are going to pull these old ones down)

I do now get one hour per day of home support and that is enough for me at present and i also know of programs run by local municipal council that provides additional support for nothing for simple tasks. They come and interview the applicant and then match them up to a volunteer who lives close by- they are police cehcked and have their expenses paid for by the council and cover anything for simple cleaning, gardening, shopping, helping take the dog for a walk or simply social support.

So without knowing how your systems i would encourage you to start with the local MS society who should be able to tell you what is avaialble and how to access it, but i would also ask at your local government level and even local community groups such as churches- but the biggest thing is i think that as demand on support is likely to be increasing these days, i think it pays to put your hand up early rather than hanging on to that last shred of so called independance like i did. Now i can see that by using the help available i am actually doing more to maintain my independance than struggling to manage alone- at least i am more in control rather than reaching crisis point.

it sounds like you are doing pretty well to find options but i hope this helps a bit

[camelgirl]

Getting Help Living alone

Its not easy living alone, I have personal experience with it., and worry about falls and such. There is provinically funded at home supports for those of fall risk in bathing. I have hired help, to do heavier stuff for me, you could check local colleges that offer the psw program. Lots of young people work for 12 dollars an hour if you can afford. Its a lot cheaper than going though the big companies.